Call him The Bible Minister, Preacher Minister and you could be right. You could catch him with a copy of the bible or Quran at a public event completely unrelated to a religious crusade. Time and again, Minister Paul Atanga Nji has burst out with bible quotes to illustrate or buttress his point in public. Most recently, he used the biblical story of Christ Jesus and two thieves on the cross, to persuade those he says are truants still resisting the national army.
We bring you Mr. Atanga’s hilarious comments as he urged Ambazonia those he has repeatedly labeled as terrorists to abandon the bushes and come back to normal life. He assured that they would be forgiven of their misdeeds.
Enjoy his unedited comments:
“Lay down your weapons you go to the center, you have the opportunity to become a brick layer, to become a carpenter, to become a farmer and the government will accompany you in that process. So we should try and build on that.
“Even when Jesus Christ had to be crucified, he was on the cross but he pardoned the good Thief Man as they call him, he gave pardon to another. So even those terrorist, it is not late. They can still lay down their weapons.
“President Paul Biya has said, ‘lay down your weapons.’ Go to the closest administrative authority, go to the closest gendarme; to the closest police; he will take you to the DDR (Demobilisation, Disarmament and Rehabilitation) center and you will start a new life.
“And the parents, ‘please if you haven’t seen your children, or your child and you don’t know where he is, look for him. Those children who are in the bushes are our sons and daughters. What are they doing in the bushes?
“They don’t have any future. They governor is here. We have visited the DDR center and those who are in this centers, the government is taking care. If you go to the DDR centers up station, you will see that they are doing farming, they are doing tailoring, they are doing activities and that is what we should do.
“The president has given another opportunity to the terrorist; that they should lay down their weapons and came out of the bushes. And to those people who killed that woman brutally, (Ayafor Florence – a prison officer) even though they belong to Lucifer’s kingdom; they already belong to Lucifer’s kingdom because they have killed an innocent woman.
“But those who are still in the bushes have the opportunity to repent and if you want to repent, President Paul Biya has given you this branch (brandishes green leaves) of peace that you should put down your weapon and talk to the local administrative authorities.
“The Prime Minister Head of government was here, he gave the same message; put down your weapons and you go meet the local administrative authorities. Tell them that ‘I am sorry for what I have done; am sorry to have killed innocent Cameroonians; I am sorry to have raped young girls; I am sorry to have committed atrocities; but God almighty forgive me’ and God in his mercy will pardon you and we will accompany you to be new citizens.
“So I have come (to Bamenda) once again to talk to the sons and daughters of this region. There is no future in the bush. Cameroon is a state of law and we have the means to protect people and their properties. We have the means to bring peace and stability in this country; we have the means to protect our citizens. But the head of state has offered a good option that lay (down) your weapons.
“These are military people you cannot fight. These are professional military people. This is the secretary of commander, the legion commander, and you cannot fight the military.
“In the bush you will never have the means to fight the military, it is not possible. So we have pockets of resistance and some truants who are still in the bushes, this is another opportunity we are telling them to come out of the bushes.
“The head of state president Paul Biya has made it clear that if you come out of bushes and lay your weapons, you will not go to jail. We will take you to the DDR center which is a vocational center.
“The other day I saw the DDR young men who were cleaning schools in town. That is something which is really good.
So I have come to tell you now my brothers and sisters go back and give this message that there is no future for those who are in the bushes.
“They should take this peace plant coming from President Paul Biya, put down their weapons and come and meet the local authorities. Talk to the forces of law and order so that we can live in peace and harmony. Otherwise, at the end of the day you will get into confrontation with the forces of law and order and you will not survive. That’s not our wish.
“So I want to tell you again my brothers and sisters take the message very clear.”